Cars, like people, suffer in polluted environments. Unfortunately, there’s not a lot that we can do to avoid the main contaminants affecting car paintwork.
Industrial, metallic particles arguably cause the most damage. These particles can come from rail dust, brake dust, or as a product of industrial work. Metallic particles stick to the paint surface and then begin the process of corrosion and expansion, which distorts and damages the paint film.
Regular car washing helps to remove the layer of pollutants that can damage the paint surface, and helps keep your paintwork pristine.
If washing the car makes you think of sponges and buckets however, beware! Using a sponge traps grit and grime between the sponge and your paintwork, leading to damage and swirl marks. We recommend the use of wash mitts – these are long fibre, super soft mitts which trap grit and grime and lift it away from the paint surface.
You may think that spending a few quid in a car wash every week will keep your motor looking like new, but even opting for the most expensive wax treatments won’t remove all the nasties attacking your paintwork.
Claying is an effective way of removing stubborn contaminants without machine polishing.
Do I need to clay?
Wash your car as normal. If the surface feels rough and gritty, then you have particles contaminating your paintwork.
A girl likes to wax - so why shouldn't your car?
There are many pollutants which will damage your paintwork, and a good way of protecting it is by applying a protective layer to your paint.
A good way of finding how protected your paintwork is, is to do a water test. Protected paintwork should repel water, whereas water will appear to stick to less well-protected paintwork.
Cleaning your car interiorWhilst regular vacuuming, dash wiping and window cleaning will keep your interior in good condition, a proper detailing session can have it looking as good as new.
Whilst the interior may not be treated to quite as many harsh contaminants as the exterior, it often gets overlooked when it comes to car cleaning.
Glass and clear plastics not only look better when polished to perfection, but also improve safety and visibility when well maintained.
Wheels suffer most in terms of the amount of bonded contaminants they encounter. They are not only closest to the road debris, but the brake dust which will constantly surround them is hot, so more likely to stick to the alloy surface. Brake dust is also metallic, so will corrode and expand, distorting and damaging the alloy surface.
Wheel cleaning is the ideal first step in washing your car, but can be a separate process as described below.
You may spend hours perfecting every other surface of your car, but for the true petrol heads there’s nothing better than a gleaming engine bay.
Why Microfibres?A Microfibre is an ultra fine fibre with less than one denier per filament. This makes it a fraction of the width of a human hair! These were first publicised in the 1990s, and have become popular as cleaning products due to their ability to retain up to 7 times their weight in water, and to pick up fine dust, grime, grease and even bacteria without use of cleaning products.
The roof of a convertible is as prone to damage by contaminants as the rest of the car, but requires slightly special treatment. It is important to make note of what your soft top is made of, so that you can care for it in the appropriate way.
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